Hogwarts: From Selling White Peppers to Becoming a God

Chapter 7 Patrick

Patrick scrutinized his guest.

Seventeen or eighteen years old—too young.

Well-dressed – indicating high social standing.

Calm and composed—seemingly full of confidence in what he is about to present.

He glanced at his watch. "Five minutes. You have five minutes to tell me why you're here. It'd better be worth it for you to break into someone's office without permission."

Murphy laughed. "One minute is enough."

He waited for Patrick to pour him a glass of water, but didn't rush to speak.

"Young man, you don't have much time," Patrick reminded him.

Murphy nodded. "Mr. Patrick, a reporter said you're the best pharmaceutical salesman; you must know a lot about pharmaceuticals. So, what do you know is the best medicine for treating external injuries?"

"Treatment for external injuries?"

Patrick frowned; that was rather amateurish.

Treatment of external injuries involves too many aspects, including wound suturing, bone grafting, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial treatment, or hemostasis and pain relief.

These steps involve different medications or medical devices, so asking "what is the best medicine for treating external injuries" is like asking "what food is the healthiest"—it's impossible to answer.

This kid is definitely a complete novice.

However, he patiently explained, "You mean antibiotics for disinfection and sterilization? For treating wound infections, penicillin is still the most commonly used drug, and cephalosporins are also quite good, with fewer side effects..."

"You've misunderstood," Murphy interrupted. "I meant medication that can help wounds heal."

Patrick glanced at Murphy. "Young man, I don't know if you've taken any medical courses, but if you have any basic medical knowledge, you should understand that the main factor affecting wound healing is actually infection..."

"Aren't there any drugs that can promote cell division and accelerate wound healing?"

"No! If you mean things like growth factors, it's true that last year's Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to Stanley and Rita, but such substances are still a long way from being used in medicine..."

"Would you believe me if I told you that this bottle of medicine in my hand can heal any wound in minutes or even seconds?"

"impossible!"

Patrick insisted, "That kind of effect can't be achieved with drugs. What you're talking about only exists in science fiction."

Murphy smiled, pulled a pair of scissors from the pen holder on the table, and said, "Mr. Patrick, are you ready to witness a miracle?"

"What...what do you want to do?" Patrick tensed up when he saw the scissors in Murphy's hand.

However, Murphy did not answer, but instead took the scissors and made a cut on his wrist.

Fresh blood immediately gushed out.

"Oh no! God! What are you doing!" Patrick exclaimed.

"Calm down! Patrick! Calm down! And look carefully! I don't want to cut myself again!"

Murphy said he used White Fresh Essence, and a few seconds later the bleeding stopped and the wound disappeared.

Murphy wiped away the bloodstains with his hand, then held up his wrist, which had only a faint bloodstain, in front of Patrick.

"Did you see that?"

"This is impossible!" Patrick's eyes widened. "Magic?"

"There's still some in the bottle; you can try it yourself."

A few minutes later, after stabbing himself and his assistant twice each, Patrick died.

Patrick shooed his assistant, who was terrified by being stabbed twice by his boss, out of the office and paced back and forth with a serious expression.

As he pondered, he asked several questions, similar to those David had asked, such as the source of the drug and whether it was patented.

But he asked more questions, including whether the drug had been registered, its production method, output, and whether it could be mass-produced.

Murphy answered truthfully, "The drug hasn't been registered yet, and I'm not very familiar with the process. As for production volume, the manufacturing method is actually quite simple; as long as there are enough raw materials, mass production shouldn't be a problem."

Patrick nodded. "We need to arrange clinical trials as soon as possible to prove the safety of the drug, then register the patent, and at the same time buy a factory so we can start production. As long as the clinical trial results aren't too bad and the side effects are within an acceptable range, it will definitely sell well! Even if the results aren't ideal, it will still have many uses."

"us?"

"You came all this way to find me, just to poach me, didn't you?" Patrick stared at him.

"I know my abilities. Many people want to poach me, but Blue Mountain has treated me well, and I have no intention of leaving. However, you are different... This... you call it Baiyao? Baiyao is different!"

"Although more verification is needed, it has already convinced me. In fact, no one in the pharmaceutical industry could refuse such a drug!"

"This is simply magic, a miracle! Just like the discovery of penicillin, it's a groundbreaking invention that has revolutionized people's understanding and changed the world!"

"I can't possibly miss such an opportunity."

At this point, he asked, "How much start-up capital do you have?"

Murphy thought for a moment, "About one and a half million."

A Porsche 959 costs over $200,000, which is less than $150,000 in pounds sterling. After going through all that trouble with the previous two million, more than half of that is still left.

Jim was right; two million pounds was indeed enough for him to live comfortably for the rest of his life.

Patrick was somewhat shocked. "That's quite a lot. Enough for us to acquire some decent pharmaceutical companies. I have over 500,000 here, which should be enough to cover all the initial expenses."

Murphy thought for a moment, "Actually, I just want to hire you. I need to have absolute control over this drug."

Patrick nodded. "I understand. But believe me, I'm worth a stake in you."

The balding man stared directly at Murphy; he had probably practiced that expression on purpose.

His focused and calm gaze makes it easy to sense his sincerity and inspire trust.

"I can't promise right now, but I'll think about it seriously," Murphy said.

Patrick was somewhat disappointed, but quickly composed himself. "I need you to tell me the general process of how Yunnan Baiyao is made. I don't need to reveal the confidential parts, but I need to know what kind of process and equipment should be used to produce this drug so that I can find a suitable factory."

"Can."

Actually, there's nothing to keep secret; the production of white umami essence is very simple.

Its original method of production involved boiling it in a crucible and using a purification spell.

But after experimentation, Murphy discovered that the purification spell was unnecessary.

He designed an extraction experiment by taking advantage of the water solubility of Dictamnus dasycarpus extract. Fresh Dictamnus dasycarpus leaves were crushed, placed in a reaction vessel, and water and glycerin were added. The mixture was stirred, filtered, heated, and the temperature was controlled. After condensation, the mixture was repeated several times. The purity of the Dictamnus dasycarpus extract obtained was much higher than that obtained by the traditional crucible refining method.

Even a complete novice can obtain succinate essence through this simple extraction process, as long as they have succinate.

This completely contradicts the basic principles Murphy learned in Potions class.

Wizards believe that the creation of any potion inevitably involves, to a greater or lesser extent, intentional or unintentional, the wizard's will and magic.

In retrospect, this was likely just wishful thinking on the part of the wizard.

Magic does not exist solely within the wizard's body; the effectiveness of potions still depends primarily on the reaction between substances, rather than the wizard's will.

After briefly explaining the experimental procedures to Patrick, Murphy emphasized, "The raw materials are the key to Yunnan Baiyao. Currently, only I can provide these raw materials."

Patrick nodded. "It sounds like the key step in making Yunnan Baiyao is extraction."

He looked around on his desk and picked up a piece of paper.

"Then the most suitable targets for us are not these chemical synthesis factories, but herbal manufacturers."

He crossed out most of the names on the list, leaving only three or four.

"These few companies might meet the requirements. I will personally inspect them tomorrow and give you a report by tomorrow afternoon at the latest."

"Ready to start now?" Murphy couldn't help but admire their initiative.

"Of course! It feels like I'm back to when I was young and just starting out in this industry, as if the whole world is waiting for me to explore and conquer! I can't wait a second longer!"

Murphy smiled. "I'm starting to think that I really should give you some shares."

Patrick laughed too. "You've got it, boss. You need empty promises to motivate employees."

"So, what should I do?"

"Think of a good name, register a company, prepare the money... I'll handle the drug registration application and approval. As for the rest... nothing for now... Oh, by the way, you said the key to Yunnan Baiyao is the raw materials. You might need to ensure the supply of materials."

"I have a feeling we'll soon be under pressure from orders."

(End of this chapter)